Professional Translators: Colours In Cultures

You may not think about the significance of colour in your day to day life but in fact, colours can remind us of an exact place, time of year or even our favourite traditions. They can even shape the way we feel and act; making them extremely important when it comes to marketing and design.

However, it’s important to remember that the meaning of colours can vary greatly in different countries and cultures. For example, the colour green is seen as a symbol of luck in Ireland. However, a man in China may wear a green hat if his wife has cheated on him. Therefore, businesses cannot simply design a brochure and expect it to work for all of their foreign audiences.

For businesses wanting to communicate with their overseas customers, they should utilise specialist multilingual DTP services from Absolute Translations; the UK’s leading provider of translation services. With expert knowledge of both languages and cultural differences; the professional translators are here to share the meaning of colours to different cultures from around the world.

Pink

For most cultures around the world, particularly in North America and Europe; pink represents femininity, tenderness and the birth of a daughter. However, in countries like Brazil and Mexico, the colour pink is typically painted on buildings and so it has become associated with architecture.

Blue

Around the world, the colour blue has many positive associations. For those in North America and Europe, blue represents trust, security and authority which explains why brands such as Paypal and Facebook utilise this colour in their logo. In countries like Turkey and Greece the colour symbolises healing and evil repellence so often; locals will carry around blue, eye-shaped amulets to protect against evil spirits.

Purple

Generally, the colour purple is associated with royalty, wealth, spirituality and nobility. For example, in the past, only the highest ranking Buddhist monks in Japan wore purple robes. However, for some countries such as Brazil and Thailand, purple is the colour of mourning. In fact, female widows will often wear purple following the death of their husbands.

White

It is common in Western cultures for white to symbolise purity, elegance and peace, that’s why it is often worn at weddings by the bride. However, in Asian countries such as China and Korea; the colour white represents death, mourning and bad luck so it is typically worn at funerals.

How is colour important in translation services?

At Absolute Translations, our team of professional translators not only have an expert knowledge of linguistics but they are skilled in multilingual DTP services! With a native-speaking team of specialists; our team make sure your brochures, catalogues and other marketing materials retain the feel and design of the original document. This includes implementing translations into the design file; adjusting font sizes, tweaking the layout and advising on design changes such as colour or imagery. After all; no one knows the business culture of your target country better than our native translators living and working in the target destination

For more information about our multilingual DTP services in over 200 languages; get in touch with our team on 0333 577 0767